A Night in India
by pinkcat4569
Summary: Jess and Chef Bernard are at it again.  This time they treat the ARC diners to a night in India.
1. Chapter 1

Title: A Night In India

Author: Pinkcat456

Ratings: K+

Spoilers: None

Description: Jess and Chef Bernard are at it again. This time they treat the ARC diners to a night in India

Disclaimer: I do not own Primeval or the characters. I did make up Bernie though.

Author's note: This continues the Feeding the Arc series, specifically, Japanese Night. You might want to read the original Feeding the ARC story and the sequel Japanese Night first.

I have never eaten Indian food, so I know nothing. Once again I turned to the internet to try and fake it. If you love this cuisine, or are of the Indian heritage please let me know if I've made any major errors, and certainly let me know if anything is in anyway offensive. I loved the research. It was fun. I went to this site:

I got confused and thought the belly dance was from India. After some web research I found an appropriate substitute- a folk dance. There are so many regions in India that there are different dances across the country. Jess decides to do an Indian-like dance, which is what I try to portray. Of course, now I have to do more research, because I have GOT to make Jess belly dance for Becker. It is a must!

Part One of Three 

"It's official, the 'ARC around the world' series continues," announced Jess strolling into the break room.

"What?" asked Abby.

Becker groaned. "She's been pestering Lester for another international canteen night."

"Brilliant," said Connor. "Japanese Night was a total blast."

"Connor," said Abby. "You don't remember Japanese Night. No one but Bernie and his staff and me remembers Japanese Night."

"That sake was certainly potent," said Jess.

"I remember a lot of it, Abby," said Connor, "I remember the awesome duet you and I did to Sonny and Cher. I also remember the grilled fish. It was brilliant."

"Yes, the food was wonderful," said Jess.

Becker said, "Some of the singing was good—Jess for instance."

Jess blushed. "Oh, thank you," she said. "We won't have to worry about drinking this time. India isn't known for its alcohol."

"What?" asked Connor. "No booze? Where's the fun in that?"

"Sorry," she said and started to giggle. "A sari is what I'll be wearing. I'm going to be in a beautiful, custom-made, flowing, long sari."

"Long? Did you say a long sari, Jess?" asked Becker in alarm. "Where's the fun in that?"

Jess rolled her eyes. "I'm off to the canteen to plan the menu with Bernie," she said, walking out of the the break room.

Connor and Becker frowned. "This sounds boring," said Connor.

"Really. I can't imagine Jess completely covered. I am depressed."

Abby just shook her head at the frowning men.

Chef Bernard Rice had just gotten word of the special night. Bernie had to remind himself how much he liked Jess Parker. She had a lot of ideas. So her ideas involved more work for him and his team. He had no choice, Lester had approved. So what if Bernie knew little about Indian cuisine? So what if what he did know made him dread the extra hours marinating lamb, soaking lentils, making curries, and ordering special spices?

Bernie tried to be positive. Extra work meant overtime pay for the canteen employees, including him. It gave him a chance to make dishes he never got to make. He'd be learning about another cuisine and culture. It would be fun. Yes, fun.

"I like Miss Parker," he repeated to himself. "I like Miss Parker."

Jess hummed happily as she searched the internet for ideas on how to decorate the canteen. She had ordered her special sari outfit, and some extra cloth in vibrant reds, oranges, greens, and golds to drape in the canteen. She'd also use specially embroidered fabric in those same rich colors as tablecloths.

She found some Buddha statues which were rather large, so she decided to put them in the corners of the canteen. Smaller statues of the Hindu gods Vishnu, Shiva, and Krishna would be placed along with some small elephants on the tables.

She then worked on entertainment. The karaoke had been a hit, and she wanted to have something just as fun for the night in India. She remembered watching a show about Hindu women having henna tattoos before their wedding. So, a little research and a few phone calls, and there was a henna artist booked for the night. She then found a dance studio that had Indian dancers for hire. They taught classes too.

The day of the special canteen night, Jess left the control room early to decorate the canteen. This time, however, she had help.

"The idea of you on a ladder hanging long pieces of cloth is truly frightening," said Becker.

"Are you inferring that I'm not graceful?" asked Jess, watching Becker climb the ladder. She hung onto the other end of a rich, bright red cloth.

"No, not at all. I'm coming right out and saying you are not graceful."

"You are going to be apologizing for that remark."

"Oh, are you referring to the top secret entertainment that you won't divulge to anyone?"

"Yes," she said as she backed up, carrying the fabric to the end of the wall. "That looks good," she said, and Becker hammered the cloth in.

"After this one, there's only three more," she said with a smile.

Becker climbed down, and moved the ladder. "The things I do to keep you safe," he said with a grin.

"You are my hero," she said batting her lashes.

Becker laughed. They hung the rest of the fabric. Becker moved the Buddha statues into place because they were kind of heavy, while Jess put the tablecloths on.

"I can't believe Lester approved the money for all this. What do you do with it all after?" asked Becker.

"Oh, some goes into storage. Take the decorations for Japanese Night. The cherry blossom trees and bamboo plants were living, so they decorate some of the offices and labs now."

"Still, it's a lot of money on jun...stuff, Jess," he said, as she frowned at him.

"It's for morale, Becker," she said, placing Krishna on a table. She held up a small elephant figurine and said, "This is more then 'stuff,' it sets up ambiance."

Becker raised his eyebrow, but didn't say anything. He helped put the rest of the gods and elephants in place.

Jess backed up and looked over the canteen. "Well, that pretty much does it. I'm going to go change," she said.

"So, this outfit," he said, as she turned back around, "I know you said it was going to be long, but it isn't is it? It is short, right? Not that I care, one way or the other."

"Really?" said Jess, not buying that for a second. "You'll just have to wait and see," she said, walking away.

End of Part One


	2. Chapter 2

Title: A Night in India

by Pinkcat456

No spoilers, Rating is K+

Part Two

Becker, Matt and Emily, Connor, Lester, and Abby all walked toward the canteen.

"What do you mean there is no booze?" said Lester, in shock.

"That's what Jess said," said Abby.

"Then why on earth are we going?" asked an appalled Lester.

"For morale," said Becker, not looking overly happy either.

Lester rolled his eyes. "I thought that died ages ago."

Emily and Matt smirked. "Jess has worked very hard on this, so we shall all be delighted this evening." She looked at the men and glared.

No one replied. Matt chuckled. "At least we get to eat," he said.

They walked into the canteen, and everyone but Becker whistled or said how pretty it all was. Becker had already seen it.

"Welcome to India," said Jess. She stood quietly, not going on in her usual chatty manner. The sari and her hair, done in a classic bun, underneath a veil, seemed to turn her into an elegant, refined lady.

Jess's sari was long and orange. It was bright and the fabric was light and flowing. It draped along her body. It had beautiful embroidery of a light peach and dark green woven into the rich fabric.

The sari was long. It wrapped over a light green long sleeve-top. The sari draped down so the green was visible along her neckline. The top was simple but had gold streaks woven into it. Gold necklaces ran down the green top.

Becker looked at the long sari draping down all the way to the floor. It was long. That's all Becker could keep thinking, how long it was. He was a little disappointed, but could not deny how beautiful she looked. She was gorgeous, but covered. Even her hair was mostly covered with a rich gold and green veil. He couldn't even she her shoes for pity sakes.

He realized that she was much shorter than normal, so she must have been wearing flats.

"I don't think I like India," he said finally.

Jess looked at him. She was shocked and a little concerned.

"You just don't seem like you," he said. The he smirked. "No high heels, you're practically entirely covered, and you're quiet. You've hardly rambled at all. I don't think I like the demure Miss Parker."

Jess smiled. "So you don't want me to convert to Hinduism?"

"No."

Chef Bernard Rice appeared. He was a happy, rather large man in his fifties. He nodded to Jess, and then waited as everyone quieted.

"Welcome. Tonight, we are in India. Before I explain the menu, let me remind you that we have hemp tattoos available, with a genuine mehndi artist. Not only are the designs intricate and beautiful they mean different things such as fertility, fortune, good health and so on. They are not permanent, but will take 2-4 weeks to fade, so be careful where you put the tattoo. Also, Miss Parker has arranged for some special entertainment so please do not leave after you stuff your face."

There was laughter, but Bernie went on.

"I have made a course-based menu, as Indian food requires several different dishes to achieve a balanced meal and taste all the many wonderful spices and ingredients used in Indian cuisine. We will also go to several regions of India."

"First, for the appetizers, we have onion fritters, or in Indian, Pyaz Pakora—pyaz meaning onions, and Pakora for fritters. We have Samosas, crispy dough filled with spicy potato filling. We also have stuffed some of the pakoras with lamb, to demonstrate the versatility of this wonderful cuisine. Our final appetizers are Dahi Bara, fritter balls with a lovely yogurt dressing."

Moving into the main dishes, from the region of Punjab we have Tandoori Chicken. Since the canteen does not come equipped with a tandoori, which is an earthen oven, we made do with a charcoal grill.

"I've had that," said Connor, "I've had tandoori chicken in a restaurant."

"Thank you, Mr. Temple," said Bernie, "I was just coming to that point. When most people, outside of India, think of Indian cuisine, it is most often Punjabi cuisine."

"Now, moving to the western shores of India, we have a fish curry and a prawn vindaloo, from the area of Goan. Actually, I interjected the prawn into the classic vindaloo as a request from Miss Parker."

Jess blushed, and looked at Becker, who returned the glance with a grin. Then he blushed.

"It is traditional to have the main course with starches and lentils, so we offer you several. We have Muli Ka Paratha which is flat-bread stuffed with radish. Radishes are available in many of the harsh climates of India and are eaten in winter. Just a little educational appetizer, for you," said Bernie with a grin.

"We also have, for starches, Makki Ki Roti which is Punjabi corn bread. Kimberly, my lovely sous-chef, who hates me now, is going to move to Punjab and become a professional bread roller."

"You try rolling that stuff into a perfect circle! It's insane," said a petite, young woman behind the counter.

"Fulfilling the lentil requirement, we have Dahi ki Dahl, split pea and yogurt soup. Yogurt in soup may sound strange, but it makes for a creamy soup. Please, give it a try. Masala is a spicy hot spice blend used throughout India. So, we use it in a gravy with chickpeas for Chana Masala."

"You cannot do Indian food without achar, or chutney. It is an entire food category in India, used everywhere, as a side dish, a gravy, a dressing, a sauce, etc. We have several chutneys: garlic, onion, mango, and coconut. Do try some of the chutneys with the other main dish Sheek Kebab, chunks of lamb, onion, tomato, and lemon roasted over our tandoori, the grill."

"We will finish our meal in India tonight with desserts. There are two categories of dessert in India. The first of our desserts comes from the Bengali region and it represents the milk-based desserts. Rasgula is a very popular dessert and it is literally, a fresh cheese ball in sugar syrup. The second dessert represents the flour-based category. We have for you Jalebi, which is made by swirling a flour batter in hot oil, frying it, then soaking it in a sugar syrup."

"Finally, do try some of Indian beverages. Chai is a spicy Indian tea. Charu is a tart tamarind water popular in South India. We also have prepared a delicious mango Lassi, a yogurt smoothie made with fresh mango."

"I am happy to report, after the sake incident, that India is not known for alcoholic drinks, so we will not be indulging in anything alcoholic tonight."

Bernie waited patiently as the crowd reacted. They yelled things like:

"What?"

"No! You're kidding!"

"Boo! Who decided that?"

"You're fired!"

Bernie smiled as the crowd began to boo in one voice. "I can tolerate this round of boos much easier than that Japanese round of booze," he said and chuckled as the audience groaned.

"Bon Appetit," he said and retreated behind the counter.

"Wrong language," said Jess, with a grin. "Fill me up, Bernie. Give me a little bit of everything."

"That's why she wore the long dress, Becker," said Connor, smirking. "She's trying to conceal the extra pounds."

Becker laughed. Jess ignored them both. "Thank you Bernie," she said, and glaring at Connor, she whispered to Becker, "I know you hate my long skirt, just be patient."

Connor heard despite the whispering. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know," said Becker. Then with a sideways grin he said, "Should be interesting though," he said, following Jess to the table.

End of Part Two


	3. Chapter 3

Title: A Night in India

by Pinkcat4569

No spoilers, Rating: K+

Part Three

After everyone had eaten, Bernie appeared in front of the canteen.

"Ladies and Gentleman, tonight for your entertainment we have a special display of Indian folk dances. Different regions of India have different dances. The following is not a specific form, it is more of an homage to the different dances you shall find across India."

To Becker's surprise, alarm, and excitement, Jess appeared, wearing the same thing she'd had on all night. As music resembling a Bollywood film played, Jess swayed her hips slowly, moving around the little stage area. She moved her arms side to side, carefully making hand gestures as she went. The gestures seemed an important part of the dance since she made so many of them. She carefully pointed her palms up, moving her fingers into various positions.

She moved her head from side to side, gracefully. She slowly twirled, allowing the sari to twirl with her. Then she shook her hips, not gyrating but slowly, rhythmically following the music. She reached up at one point and removed the veil, bringing it along as she danced. She was graceful as she moved her hips and her arms, the fabric of the sari and the veil sashaying around her. She then lifted her hands above her head, pointing up, and smiled. The music stopped.

The room broke into applause. She then looked at Becker and smiled. He simply sat there, pleasantly smiling. She hadn't noticed him clapping, but she wasn't offended. The way he looked at her was better than applause. His smile was sweet, his cheeks lightly pink, and his eyes never left hers.

"Thank you," she said, bowing to the audience. "I've only had a few lessons, and honestly I am rubbish. So, I've asked my teacher to perform for you, and trust me, she deserves the applause. Please welcome, Sashi."

A beautiful young Indian woman came in. She was barefoot, wore a bright purple dress, adorned with lots of beads and jewels, chains and necklaces. She looked a little like a gypsy dancer. Sashi began to dance, and Jess walked over to Becker.

"That was beautiful," he said softly as she returned to his side.

"Thank you," she said breathlessly. "It's a lot harder than it looks!"

"You were right, by the way. I do owe you an apology. You were very graceful," he said.

She blushed. "Thank you." They smiled at each other.

Jess turned to watch the performance, and Becker did too, but he couldn't help sneaking peeks at Jess.

Sashi danced alone, doing some of the moves Jess had done, but much more complex. Then, four other dancers, all women, joined. They twirled and moved in a circle, doing mudras, the name for ritual movements of the hands.

The dancers linked hands performing a few circular movements as one, then they broke into two pairs, with Sashi in the middle, doing a solo of complicated back bends, splits, and rolls. The other dancers linked hands and moved around in circles. Then the five dancers lined up and performed more hip movements and mudras.

The audience broke out with applause at the finish of the performance. Jess clapping and screaming.

The music began playing again, and this time men in Indian dress began to dance. They wore long flowing coats in white or a faded, dusty red, with pants of the same color. They carried large brass pots that they put on their heads as they danced. At one point they took their hands from them and balanced the pots on their heads as they danced.

Whistles and murmurs of amazement complemented the dancers. Becker, however, was not paying attention. In the back of the canteen, behind the lunch counter, Jess had retreated. She was doing something with her sari.

Becker watched as she removed some of the necklaces. She then began to unwrap the sari, making Becker realize that it was one long piece of fabric. As she unwrapped the sari, her legs became visible. The long piece of fabric came off, revealing a short orange skirt. It was delicate but a little stiffer than the sari material, with green embroidered into it. Next, Jess took off the green top, revealing a sleeveless tank underneath. It was the same orange color as the skirt, and was made of the stiffer material. It had light orange embroidered into it and thin bands of green around the collar, sleeves and waist band.

As for Jess' waist, Becker could see it now, as there was a space of several inches between the skirt and the tank. Her belly button was showing.

She removed the veil completely, and took down her hair. She then put the necklaces back on. She kicked off her flat orange shoes and put on a pair of red high heels.

She joined Becker at the table. "Better?" she asked.

"Definitely," he said with a big smile. "You looked beautiful before but," he said as his eyes lingered on her legs, "I prefer this look."

Jess laughed.

The dancers had stopped, and the floor was turned over to anyone wanting to try some folk dancing. Sashi and the other dancers remained, offering guidance to the new dancers.

Abby was pretty good at the mudras. Connor kept causing one of the pots to fall to the floor with repeated loud bangs. Matt didn't approve of the dancing at all. He wanted to hold Emily in his arms as he danced. Emily enjoyed the dancing, so Matt finally backed up and just watched her.

Becker and Jess stayed at their table. Becker was satisfied with staring at Jess' belly button and legs. Jess was content to sit and be stared at.

Lester was arguing with Bernie.

"There has to be an alcoholic beverage indigenous to the peoples of India," he said. "What kind of a culture would condemn husbands to sobriety all the time? It's barbaric."

"At least this time Mr. Lester," said Bernie, "you should have a 100% attendance tomorrow morning."

Lester grunted. "True, although Japanese night seemed much more fun. What I remember of it, of course."

Bernie just smiled.

Lester glanced over at Jess. "I wonder what that pretty little head has in store for us next time?"

"She did mention something about Greece," said Bernie.

"Greece?" asked Lester, perking up. "They have that wonderful ouzo, don't they?"

Bernie groaned. "Sir, the way people are misled by ouzo to think they aren't drunk, then get hit later on with intoxication, you'd have a minus percentage of workers the next day."

"True, but it will be one hell of a good party. Bernie, I'm making this a direct order: starting stocking up on ouzo."

"Yes sir," said Bernie. "I'll also stock up on pain medication, coffee, and all kind of remedies for hang-overs."

"Good man."

Jess and Becker had heard.

"Goody," she said, clapping her hands. "Pita bread, lots of fish, grape leaves, gyros, baklava..."

"Togas," said Becker. "Are you sure you want to subject this crowd to Temple in a toga, because you know he will."

Jess laughed. "So will I Captain. Can you stand the sight of me in a short little toga?"

Becker smiled. "Is this a trick question?"

"Maybe you should join Connor in a toga," she said, causing Becker to look at her in alarm. "Ooh, let's make it 'GREEK TOGA NIGHT.' Everyone has to wear a toga, and crowns of laurel leaves, ooh, and sandals. This will be so much fun."

Becker groaned and said, "Just make me sure you pass me some ouzo before you put me in a toga."

End of "A Night In India"


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